U.S. patent application number 13/664008 was filed with the patent office on 2014-05-01 for carbon nanotube devices with unzipped low-resistance contacts.
This patent application is currently assigned to INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION. The applicant listed for this patent is INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Damon B. Farmer, Aaron D. Franklin, Joshua T. Smith, George S. Tulevski.
Application Number | 20140120714 13/664008 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 50546172 |
Filed Date | 2014-05-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140120714 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Farmer; Damon B. ; et
al. |
May 1, 2014 |
CARBON NANOTUBE DEVICES WITH UNZIPPED LOW-RESISTANCE CONTACTS
Abstract
A method of creating a semiconductor device is disclosed. An end
of a carbon nanotube is unzipped to provide a substantially flat
surface. A contact of the semiconductor device is formed. The
substantially flat surface of the carbon nanotube is coupled to the
contact to create the semiconductor device. An energy gap in the
unzipped end of the carbon nanotube may be less than an energy gap
in a region of the carbon nanotube outside of the unzipped end
region.
Inventors: |
Farmer; Damon B.; (White
Plains, NY) ; Franklin; Aaron D.; (Croton on Hudson,
NY) ; Smith; Joshua T.; (Croton on Hudson, NY)
; Tulevski; George S.; (White Plains, NY) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION |
Armonk |
NY |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES
CORPORATION
Armonk
NY
|
Family ID: |
50546172 |
Appl. No.: |
13/664008 |
Filed: |
October 30, 2012 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
438/610 ;
257/E21.507; 977/742 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01L 29/0673 20130101;
H01L 29/0669 20130101; H01L 21/02603 20130101; H01L 51/0048
20130101; B82Y 99/00 20130101; H01L 21/02606 20130101; Y10S 977/742
20130101; H01L 29/0665 20130101; H01L 51/105 20130101; H01L 29/78
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
438/610 ;
977/742; 257/E21.507 |
International
Class: |
H01L 21/60 20060101
H01L021/60 |
Claims
1. A method of forming a semiconductor device, the method
comprising: unzipping an end of a carbon nanotube to provide a
substantially flat surface; forming a contact of the semiconductor
device; and coupling the substantially flat surface of the carbon
nanotube to the contact to create the semiconductor device.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein unzipping the end of the carbon
nanotube further comprises one of forming a longitudinal cut at the
end of the carbon nanotube and forming a spiral cut at the end of
the carbon nanotube.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising coupling a free edge
of the substantially flat surface of the carbon nanotube to the
contact.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising sandwiching the
substantially flat surface of the carbon nanotube between the
contact and a substrate of the semiconductor device.
5. The method of claim 4, further comprising disposing the carbon
nanotube on a surface of a high-k dielectric, unzipping the end of
the carbon nanotube to provide the substantially flat surface on
the surface of the high-k dielectric, and forming the contact on
top of the substantially flat surface of the carbon nanotube.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein coupling the substantially flat
surface to the contact reduces a contact resistance between the
contact and the carbon nanotube.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the contact is one of a source
contact and a drain contact and the carbon nanotube is a gated
channel of the semiconductor device.
8. A method of forming a carbon nanotube field-effect transistor,
comprising: altering a physical structure of a segment of the
carbon nanotube to reduce an energy gap in the altered segment; and
coupling the altered segment to a contact to create the carbon
nanotube field-effect transistor.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein altering the physical structure
of the segment of the carbon nanotube further comprises unzipping
an end segment of the carbon nanotube and unrolling the unzipped
end segment to form a substantially planar surface.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein unzipping the end segment
further comprises one of forming a longitudinal cut at the end
segment of the carbon nanotube and forming a spiral cut at the end
segment of the carbon nanotube.
11. The method of claim 8, further comprising coupling an edge of
the substantially planar surface to the contact.
12. The method of claim 8, further comprising sandwiching the
altered segment of the carbon nanotube between the contact and a
substrate of the field effect transistor.
13. The method of claim 8, wherein coupling the altered segment to
the contact reduces a contact resistance between the contact and
the carbon nanotube.
14. The method of claim 8, wherein the contact is one of a source
contact and a drain contact and the carbon nanotube is a gated
channel.
15. A method of reducing a contact resistance in a carbon nanotube
transistor, comprising: unzipping a segment of a carbon nanotube;
forming a planar surface from the unzipped segment of the carbon
nanotube; and coupling the planar surface to a contact of the
carbon nanotube transistor.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein unzipping the segment of the
carbon nanotube further comprises one of forming a longitudinal cut
at an end of the carbon nanotube and forming a spiral cut at an end
of the carbon nanotube.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein coupling the planar surface to
the contact further comprises forming a covalent bond between the
contact and a dangling carbon bond at an edge of the planar
surface.
18. The method of claim 15, further comprising sandwiching the
planar surface between a substrate and the contact.
19. The method of claim 15, wherein altering the physical structure
of the segment reduces an energy gap in the unzipped segment with
respect the energy gap of the carbon nanotube outside of the
unzipped segment.
20. The method of claim 15, wherein the contact is one of a source
contact and a drain contact and the carbon nanotube is a gated
channel.
21-40. (canceled)
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] The present invention relates to carbon nanotube field
effect transistors (FETs), and more specifically, to improving
electrical coupling between contact metals and carbon nanotubes in
carbon nanotube field effect transistors.
[0002] Carbon nanotube field-effect transistors generally include a
carbon nanotube that spans a gap between a source contact and a
drain contact and serves as the channel of the transistor, the
conductance of which is modulated by a gate separated from the
nanotube channel by a dielectric material. There exists a contact
resistance at the interfaces between the carbon nanotube and the
source/drain contacts due, in part, to difficulties in coupling the
cylindrical surface of the carbon nanotube to the contacts. High
contact resistance at the interface between the carbon nanotube and
either of the contacts will reduce current injection into the
nanotube channel, thereby decreasing the performance of the
transistor. This problem of contact resistance is exacerbated at
technologically relevant nanotube diameters that are less than
about 2 nanometers (nm) where a Schottky barrier presents itself at
the contact metal/nanotube interface. The band gap of the carbon
nanotube increases inversely with respect to diameter and a
sufficiently large bandgap (.about.0.6 eV) is necessary to attain a
suitable on-/off-current ratio for digital applications. However,
decreasing the diameter to achieve this bandgap leads to larger
Schottky barriers and weaker coupling between the contact metal and
the carbon nanotube thus increasing the contact resistance.
SUMMARY
[0003] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a
method creating a semiconductor device includes: unzipping an end
of a carbon nanotube to provide a substantially flat surface;
forming a contact of the semiconductor device; and coupling the
planar surface of the carbon nanotube to the contact to create the
semiconductor device.
[0004] According to another embodiment of the present invention, a
method of creating a carbon nanotube field-effect transistor
includes: altering a physical structure of a segment of the carbon
nanotube to reduce an energy gap in the altered segment; and
coupling the altered segment to a contact to create the carbon
nanotube field-effect transistor.
[0005] According to another embodiment of the present invention, a
method of reducing a contact resistance in a carbon nanotube
transistor includes: unzipping a segment of a carbon nanotube;
forming a planar surface from the unzipped segment of the carbon
nanotube; and coupling the planar surface to a contact of the
carbon nanotube transistor.
[0006] Additional features and advantages are realized through the
techniques of the present invention. Other embodiments and aspects
of the invention are described in detail herein and are considered
a part of the claimed invention. For a better understanding of the
invention with the advantages and the features, refer to the
description and to the drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is
particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at
the conclusion of the specification. The forgoing and other
features, and advantages of the invention are apparent from the
following detailed description taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings in which:
[0008] FIGS. 1-6 illustrate an exemplary manufacturing process for
creating an exemplary carbon nanotube field effect transistor in
one embodiment of the present invention, in which:
[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates a starting substrate structure including
a co-planar local bottom gate formed therein, a dielectric layer
formed over the bottom gate, and a carbon nanotube deposited on the
dielectric layer and aligned to the local bottom gate;
[0010] FIG. 2 illustrates a barrier material and a photoresist
layer formed over the structure of FIG. 1;
[0011] FIG. 3 illustrates windows formed in the barrier material
and a photoresist layer of FIG. 2 that expose ends of the carbon
nanotube.
[0012] FIG. 4 illustrates unzipped ends of the carbon nanotube,
which are formed by chemical treatment of the nanotube in the
exposed window areas of FIG. 3;
[0013] FIG. 5 illustrates resist layer having windows for formation
of source/drain contacts on the unzipped ends of FIG. 4;
[0014] FIG. 6 illustrates contact metal deposited onto the unrolled
ends of the carbon nanotube;
[0015] FIG. 7 shows an exemplary contact formed using the exemplary
manufacturing processes disclosed herein; and
[0016] FIG. 8 shows an exemplary band gap diagram of a carbon
nanotube that has two ends that have been unzipped and to lie flat
as disclosed herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] FIGS. 1-6 illustrate an exemplary manufacturing process for
creating an exemplary carbon nanotube field effect transistor in
one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 illustrates a first
stage of the manufacturing process. A substrate 102 is provided
that has a co-planar local bottom gate 104 formed therein, filled
with a bottom gate material, such as tungsten, for example. The
substrate 102 may include silicon dioxide (SiO.sub.2) in various
embodiments. Top surfaces of the substrate 102 and of the local
bottom gate 104 are substantially aligned to form a substantially
planar surface using, for example, chemical mechanical polishing. A
high-k dielectric layer 106 is formed on the planar surface of the
substrate 102 and local bottom gate 104. The high-k dielectric
layer 106 may be deposited using, for example, atomic layer
deposition or other suitable deposition methods. Exemplary high-k
dielectric material may include HfO.sub.2 and Al.sub.2O.sub.3,
among others. The high-k dielectric layer 106 may provide
electrical isolation of the underlying gate 104 from transistor
source and drain metals formed in later manufacturing processes. A
carbon nanotube 108 is deposited on a top layer of the high-k
dielectric material 106. The carbon nanotube 108 is generally
aligned with the local bottom gate 102 so as to span the local
bottom gate 104, such that the ends of the carbon nanotube 108
extend beyond the local bottom gate 104 and over the silicon
substrate 102.
[0018] FIG. 2 illustrates a second stage of the manufacturing
process. An etch barrier material 110 is deposited over the top
surfaces of the high-k dielectric layers 106 and the carbon
nanotube 108. In various embodiments, the barrier material 110 may
be Si.sub.3N.sub.4, Al.sub.2O.sub.3 or other suitable barrier
material. The etch barrier material serves as both a protective
layer in later manufacturing steps to prevent chemical unzipping of
the nanotube in a channel region of the carbon nanotube (discussed
below) and a means to self-align the contact metals to the unzipped
portion of the nanotube in the contact areas of the carbon nanotube
(discussed below). A resist layer 112 is then formed on top of the
barrier material 110.
[0019] FIG. 3 illustrates a third stage of the manufacturing
process. In this stage, windows 114a and 114b are formed in the
resist layer 112 and transferred to the barrier material 110 by
means of chemical etching. Windows 114a and 114b may be formed by
standard lithographic processing of the resist layer 112 followed
by wet etching of the barrier material 108a. In this way, the
pattern defined in the resist layer 112 by windows 114a and 114b is
transferred through exposed portions of the barrier material 110 so
as to expose ends 108a and 108b of the carbon nanotube 108, while
also still covering a middle segment of the carbon nanotube 108
that forms the channel region 108c of the carbon nanotube 108.
[0020] FIG. 4 illustrates a fourth stage of the manufacturing
process. The resist layer 112 is removed and the ends of the carbon
nanotube 108 in the exposed window areas 114a and 114b are unzipped
and unrolled to form a planar surface of contact regions 108a and
108b, as disclosed herein. The planar surface is then disposed to
lie substantially flat against the high-k dielectric layer 106. In
one embodiment, unzipping an end of the carbon nanotube 108
includes forming a cut in the end of the carbon nanotube. In an
exemplary embodiment, the cut is along a longitudinal direction of
the carbon nanotube 108. Alternately, the cut may be along a spiral
direction of the carbon nanotube 108. The cut may be formed by
subjecting the exposed carbon nanotube contact regions 108a and
108b of the carbon nanotube 108 to a potassium permanganate
(KMnO.sub.4) mixture, for example. The potassium permanganate
breaks bonds in the surface of the carbon nanotube 108, thereby
creating two free edges of the carbon nanotube 108 in the contact
regions 108a and 108b. The free edges include dangling bonds that
enable the establishment of covalent bonds between contact metal
(shown in FIG. 6) and the nanotube i.e. edge contacted devices. The
barrier layer 110 may include a wetting layer to reduce air gaps
between the barrier layer 110 and the carbon nanotube 108 to
prevent access of the potassium permanganate or other chemical
treatment to the carbon nanotube channel region 108c. As shown
below with respect to FIG. 8, preserving the channel region 108c in
its cylindrical form preserves the bandgap in this region.
[0021] FIG. 5 illustrates a fifth stage of the manufacturing
process. Resist 116 is applied to the surface of the transistor and
developed to reopen windows 114a and 114b in the contact regions of
the carbon nanotube 108, i.e., at the unrolled ends 108a and 108b
of the carbon nanotube 108.
[0022] FIG. 6 illustrates a sixth stage of the manufacturing
process. Contact metal 120 is deposited in the window areas 114a
and 114b onto the contact regions 108a and 108b of the carbon
nanotube 108. The contact metal 120 such as palladium for p-type or
erbium for n-type transistors may be deposited by electron-beam
deposition or other suitable method. The contact metal 120 thus
couples to planar surfaces of the contact regions 108a and 108b.
Additionally, the contact metal may couple to the free edges of the
contact regions 108a and 108b, thereby forming covalent bonds with
the dangling bonds of the free edges. The resist 116 is then lifted
off of exposed surfaces to complete the carbon nanotube field
effect transistor. A subsequent anneal at temperatures in the range
from about 200.degree. C. to about 400.degree. C. in one of
N.sub.2, forming gas, or vacuum may provide further improvements in
contact resistance.
[0023] FIG. 7 shows an exemplary contact 700 formed using the
exemplary process disclosed herein. Carbon nanotube 702 includes a
cylindrical channel region 702a and an unzipped contact region
702b. The cylindrical channel region 702a spans the gated section
of the transistor. The unzipped contact region 702b is laid
substantially flat against the high-k dielectric 704 and contact
706 is formed thereon. The width W of the unzipped contact region
702b is related to the diameter d.sub.CNT of the carbon nanotube
(W=.pi.d.sub.CNT).sub.. The unzipped contact region 702b and the
contact 706 form a substantially seamless contact. Current enters
the unzipped contact region 702b from the contact 706 either at the
free edges 710 (as shown by exemplary current 720) or through the
surface 712 (as shown by exemplary current 722).
[0024] FIG. 8 shows an exemplary band gap diagram 800 of a carbon
nanotube that has ends that have been unzipped and flattened as
disclosed herein to form a carbon nanotube field-effect transistor.
The exemplary band gap diagram 800 includes a first bandgap region
802 that corresponds to the bandgap of the cylindrical channel
region 702a of the carbon nanotube of FIG. 7, also referred to
herein as the channel region. The exemplary band gap diagram 800
also includes second bandgap regions 804 that correspond to a band
gap diagram for the unzipped contact regions 702b of the carbon
nanotube of FIG. 7. In the band gap diagram 800, E.sub.0 is a
vacuum energy level. Energy gap E.sub.G1 is an energy gap of the
carbon nanotube in the cylindrical channel region 702a and is the
energy difference between a valence band energy level E.sub.V1 and
the conduction band energy level E.sub.C1 in the channel region. In
various aspects, the energy gap E.sub.G1 is inversely proportion to
a diameter of the carbon nanotube (E.sub.G1.about.1/d.sub.CNT).
E.sub.G2 is the energy gap in the unzipped region of the carbon
nanotube that forms the contacts to the source and/or drain. The
E.sub.G2 is the energy difference between valence band energy level
E.sub.V2 and conduction band energy level E.sub.C2.
[0025] In an exemplary embodiment, energy band gap E.sub.G2 in
unzipped region 702b is less than the energy band gap E.sub.G1 in
the cylindrical channel region 702a. For example, for a 1.2 nm
carbon nanotube, the band gap values for the carbon nanotube
channel region E.sub.G1 ranges from about 650 meV to about 700 meV
and the width of the unzipped region is approximately 3.8 nm.
Experimentally, the band gap of the unzipped contact region
E.sub.G2 is Eg=.alpha./W, wherein .alpha.=0.7-1.5 i.e. the bandgap
of a graphene nanoribbon. Thus, the band gap values for the
unzipped region E.sub.G2 ranges from about 185 meV to about 395
meV, roughly half of the channel bandgap E.sub.G1.
[0026] E.sub.FM is the Fermi level of the metal or a potential
energy level for an electron as defined by the Fermi-Dirac
distribution, for example. .phi..sub.m is a metal work function of
the contact metal or the energy required to move an electron from a
Fermi energy level to the vacuum level. A Schottky barrier is
denoted by .phi..sub.B. The Schottky barrier .phi..sub.B is defined
as the difference between a minimum in the conduction band and the
metal Fermi level E.sub.FM for an n-type semiconductor and is a
difference between the valence band maximum and the metal Fermi
level for a p-type semiconductor. The Schottky barrier arises from
a mismatch between the semiconductor Fermi level and the contact
metal Fermi level at the interface. The Schottky barrier
.phi..sub.B generally is present when the band gap is within a
range that is useful for digital transistors .about.0.6 eV. The
Schottky barrier generally inhibits current injection into a
valance band for a p-type device. As shown in the exemplary band
gap diagram 800, the Schottky barrier rises to a level above
E.sub.V2. Thus for a carbon nanotube device without unzipped or
flattened ends (i.e., where E.sub.V2 =E.sub.V1 and
E.sub.G2=E.sub.G1), the Schottky barrier inhibits injection of
electrons directly into the contact region 702b. Similar arguments
can be made for inhibiting injection into the conduction band for
an n-type device. The band diagram 800 also shows that for the
second bandgap region 804 (where E.sub.G2<E.sub.G1 and E.sub.V2
is close to E.sub.FM) the Schottky barrier is much smaller or
vanishes altogether in the unzipped contact region 702b. Therefore,
reducing the energy gap E.sub.g in the second bandgap region 804
lowers the Schottky barrier. As a result, the contact resistance
associated with the Schottky barrier is reduced or eliminated.
Thus, an applied bias in the gated region 702b simply modulates
E.sub.G1 and therefore the current through the channel as in a
conventional metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) device.
[0027] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing
particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of
the invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and
"the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood
that the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising," when used in this
specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers,
steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude
the presence or addition of one more other features, integers,
steps, operations, element components, and/or groups thereof.
[0028] The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and
equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the
claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or
act for performing the function in combination with other claimed
elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present
invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and
description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the
invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations
will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without
departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The
embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the
principles of the invention and the practical application, and to
enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the
invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are
suited to the particular use contemplated
[0029] The flow diagrams depicted herein are just one example.
There may be many variations to this diagram or the steps (or
operations) described therein without departing from the spirit of
the invention. For instance, the steps may be performed in a
differing order or steps may be added, deleted or modified. All of
these variations are considered a part of the claimed
invention.
[0030] While the exemplary embodiment to the invention had been
described, it will be understood that those skilled in the art,
both now and in the future, may make various improvements and
enhancements which fall within the scope of the claims which
follow. These claims should be construed to maintain the proper
protection for the invention first described.
* * * * *